1. Marijuana use can impact teens' judgment and self-control which could lead to poor decisions and risky behavior.

2. Marijuana damages teens' brains and bodies in different ways than it does adults, specifically affecting attention, learning, memory, and processing speeds.

3. Marijuana use can keep teens from doing their best in school and work as regular use has been linked to lower academic performance.

4. Teens who use marijuana are more likely to become addicted than adults who use marijuana.

5. Marijuana of today is much stronger than marijuana from the past. The psychoactive chemical (THC) content is much higher and teens can never be sure what they are putting into their bodies or what it will do to them.

Marijuana bong

Marijuana pipe

Marijuana vaporizer

Marijuana edibles

Marijuana Products

Marijuana is not just smoked or made into oil; it now comes in many different products such as cookies, candy bars, and soda which are more appealing to youth. There are varying levels of THC (the psychoactive substance in marijuana) in these products and many are not meant to be eaten or drunk all at one time, though they resemble products that most would eat or drink all at once. Eating or drinking too much of these marijuana products has lead to severe health consequences for people of all ages.

Mixed Messages

With legalization of marijuana in other states and the legalization of medical marijuana in Maine, youth are getting a lot of mixed messages about the safety of marijuana use. HCCA keeps it simple: marijuana use affects brain development in youth and is best avoided; smoking marijuana as an adult is very different from smoking marijuana as a youth.

HCCA doesn’t have a stance on the issue of legalizing marijuana or on medical marijuana; however, there are good reasons concerning health to reduce marijuana use among youth.